West Boylston celebration is Saturday, May 25

Saturday, May 25, marks the inaugural Memorial Day weekend celebration sponsored by the It’s a Celebration Committee. The non-profit group formed in 2010 to encourage more community-wide celebrations.

This year’s events run in conjunction with The American Legion’s annual chicken barbecue. Events and booths scheduled by local non-profit groups and teams then move to the common. The evening will end with fireworks and a bonfire.

Non-profit and school groups involved include: the West Boylston Athletic Association, the West Boylston High School Touchdown Club, The National Honor Society and the West Boylston Arts Foundation.

The following is the scheduled list of events for Saturday:

8 a.m.: registration begins for the 5K road race, sponsored by the It’s a Celebration group, at the American Legion, 159 Hartwell St.

10 a.m.: Race begins. Route will travel down Hartwell Street, to Maple Street, through the “Battlegrounds” area of town, to Shrewsbury Street and returning to the finish line at the American Legion.

•A Hot Shot Basketball Shoot Out will be held on the basketball courts, from 3 to 6 p.m. Proceeds from this event will benefit the American Diabetes Association Central Mass. ‘Step Out Walk’ in September. Cost is $3 for five shots. Prizes will be awarded in the following ages divisions: Under 10; 11 to 15; 16-20; 21-40; 41-plus.

•Fireworks will begin at sunset, approximately 8:15 p.m. Fireworks will be shot from behind the pool, so the high school baseball field will be off-limits during the festivities. The football and soccer field will be open for spectators.

•A bonfire will immediately follow the fireworks in the area of the former Pine Grove, behind the fields.

Traffic/parking

From 3 p.m. until the end of the bonfire, traffic on Goodale Street will be one-way, from the park to to Newton Street. Parking will be in the public lots at Goodale Park, the middle/high school and Major Edwards Elementary School. Street parking will not be allowed on Goodale, Crescent or the pool road.

Fireworks are being fired from behind the pool, over the baseball field. Access to the baseball field is prohibited.

There will be no activities on Sunday, May 26. Memorial Day, Monday, May 27, will follow town tradition for a solemn observance (see the Memorial Day schedule, page 2).